Music archive entry

The piece is structured into a series of long bars, without a regular sense of pulse, with most bars containing one or more dramatic events which will be cued by the conductor. Some bars contain repeated rhythmic figures, and so will be conducted normally.

There are four, flexibly scored, instrumental lines, and four vocal lines - two for female voices and two for male voices. In addition a snare drum is needed. The piece will work with a small group, but will be more effective with a larger number of performers.

The text consists of descriptions of deaths during the Northern Ireland Troubles, and their effects on people, taken from an article in The Independent of October 12th 1999, by David McKittrick. The text is intentionally shocking. The title of the piece quotes a father whose son was killed, and whose wife later died of grief.

The article quoted extracts from the book Lost Lives - the stories of the men, women, and children who died as a result of the Northern Ireland troubles by David McKittrick, Seamus Kelters, Brian Feeney, and Chris Thornton, published by Mainstream.